Chapter 17: I’m Going to Borrow an “Iron Ox” (Tractor)
Su Yongzhen was furious at Su He for spouting nonsense. But he knew there was no point in explaining, so he forced a smile and said to Su He, “Su He, your little aunt was indeed in the wrong. You’ve already hit her and scolded her, so for the sake of your grandpa and grandma, let her go, alright?”
Su He glanced at him. “Make her apologize to my mom and the villagers, then I’ll let her go. Otherwise, I’ll hand her over to the commune and report her for sowing discord between peasant brothers and stirring up class resentment!”
Zhang Lianxiang figured a wise person doesn’t fight when the odds are against them—and she was also genuinely spooked by the big accusation Su He threw at her. So she begrudgingly apologized.
Su He actually didn’t want to let them off that easily. But seeing how Old Man Su didn’t want to escalate the situation, she let Zhang Lianxiang go.
The couple left gnashing their teeth.
Once they were gone, the crowd dispersed as well.
Back at home, Su He noticed Old Man Su looking troubled and asked, “Grandpa, is there something on your mind?”
Old Man Su tapped his tobacco pipe against his shoe sole, took a few puffs, then sighed.
“Spring plowing is just around the corner. Every year, our village borrows oxen from Zhangjia Village to till the fields. But after today, Zhang Zhanfa will likely cause trouble.
If we can’t borrow the oxen, people in the village will start pointing fingers at our Su family.”
Zhang Zhanfa, Zhang Lianxiang’s father, was the accountant of Zhangjia Village and held considerable influence there.
Su He hadn’t known anything about borrowing oxen for farming. After all, the original Su He rarely communicated with her family after returning, let alone about things like this.
“Grandpa, do we have to borrow from Zhangjia Village? Can’t we try other teams?”
“Zhangjia Village is the wealthiest—they have more than ten adult oxen. Other brigades can barely meet their own needs, let alone lend any out.
Sigh. If I had known this would happen, I wouldn’t have let them in the house. Then none of this would’ve happened.”
Old Man Su resumed puffing on his pipe, occasionally coughing from the smoke.
He’d had a rough life. Years ago, because his eldest son Su Yongguo and his wife hadn’t had any sons, people in the village gossiped about them constantly, and he’d felt too ashamed to even hold his head up.
Then the second son Su Yongshi had a son, and only then did Old Man Su feel like he could stand tall. That’s why he and Old Madam Su favored Yongshi so much.
But not long after that, the third son Su Yongzhen married into his wife’s family, bringing shame to Old Man Su’s name.
Eventually, the second son and his wife got temporary jobs at the textile factory, finally giving him a moment of pride—but now the oxen problem threatened to drag their family’s reputation through the mud again.
Old Madam Su started venting her frustration on Zhao Cui’er. After all, Zhao Cui’er had been the one to slap Zhang Lianxiang and spark the whole mess.
“You’re usually too timid to fart, and today you suddenly grow a spine?!”
Zhao Cui’er lowered her head, silently wiping her tears, full of grievances but too afraid to talk back.
Su He chuckled. “Grandma, you’re one to talk. If Zhang Lianxiang hadn’t run fast, your firewood stick would’ve broken her leg!”
Old Madam Su was momentarily speechless. “… I was just trying to scare her! Who actually swings for real like your mom?”
“Oh, that reminds me,” Old Madam Su continued, “That woman didn’t even mention anything about relief grain. Why’d you bring that up?”
Su He sighed. “Grandma, if I hadn’t said that, would the onlookers have defended us? If I didn’t scare her a bit, what if she came back with people from Zhangjia Village to take revenge?”
Old Madam Su was silenced by that logic.
Old Man Su set his pipe aside. “Enough, let’s keep eating. If worst comes to worst, I’ll find a middleman to negotiate. Sigh…”
The meal was a mess—probably only Su Xiaoman ate her fill.
Back in the west room, Zhao Cui’er kept wiping her tears.
Su Yongguo tried to comfort her. “This isn’t your fault. If she weren’t a woman, I would’ve punched her already. The stuff she said—was that even human speech?!
Didn’t Dad say he’d try to talk to someone? Zhang Zhanfa may have status, but Zhangjia Village still has a brigade leader!
And even if we can’t borrow oxen, so what? We’ll just work harder. Let people say what they want—they’ll forget all about it in a few weeks.”
Though he said that, his face was clouded with worry.
Even the usually carefree Su Xiaoman was sighing, too.
The reason was simple—she was afraid the other kids would ostracize her.
That’s how kids in the countryside were—if the adults disliked someone, the kids would follow suit, even going further.
Su He was the kind of person who fiercely protected her own. Although she hadn’t spent much time with the Su family, she already considered them her people.
So she made up her mind. “Mom, don’t worry. It’s just a farming issue, right? I’ll find a way to borrow a tractor, and everything will be fine.”
Zhao Cui’er was stunned. “You mean an Iron Ox?”
In the countryside, people often called tractors “Iron Ox”—a pretty fitting nickname.
Su He nodded. “Yeah, exactly.”
Before Zhao Cui’er could speak, Su Xiaoman rolled her eyes. “Quit bragging! Iron Ox are rare! I heard our commune doesn’t even have one!”
Zhao Cui’er and Su Yongguo also thought Su He was bluffing. Tractors were incredibly rare—rumor had it the commune leaders had applied to the county’s Agricultural Machinery Bureau for years without success.
How could a little girl like Su He pull it off?
Truth be told, Su He wasn’t confident either. She didn’t plan to buy one from the Exchange Market System.
Small items were fine, but large equipment like tractors needed a legitimate source—or people would definitely become suspicious.
Back in this era, tractors were managed and distributed by the Agricultural Machinery Bureau. Even commune leaders had trouble applying for them through regular channels—so there was no way she could get one that way.
She needed a workaround.
Then she remembered—Cao Hongmei had mentioned that the couple next door, to the west, worked at a machinery factory. Maybe she could use that…
With that thought, Su He headed to the east room.
“Grandpa, I’m planning to go to the county town tomorrow.”
Old Man Su thought she was still thinking about the 150 yuan. “Let’s wait until we’ve resolved the oxen issue. Then I’ll go get the money for you.”
“Grandpa, I’m not going for the money. I’m going to the county to borrow a tractor.”
Old Man Su: “…Su He, what did you just say?
There are only two Iron Ox in the whole county. They get assigned to Qiping Commune and Xiangyang Commune every year. Our Huaihua Commune doesn’t even get a share. How is a little girl like you going to borrow one?”
